The price of survival
by Dedalus
Summary: Oneshot. Something bad happened and the pack needs to heal. There's love and friendship and betrayal and death. What else does a good story need?   Danny/Stiles Scott/Jackson
1. Chapter 1

This was a little side project of mine. Whenever I saw my study cards, and felt the urge the slam my head on the desk a few times, I started writing instead. This is a oneshot no prequels or sequels are planed. I hope you can enjoy it.

Warnings: Character death!

Disclaimer

Neither the characters nor the storyline is mine. I just like to play with them. No money was made from this story. No animals or children were hurt during the writing of this story...

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><p>The price of survival<p>

It was six a clock, on a fucking Saturday, when his phone woke him up, and Stiles was ready to kill whoever it was, that had the insolence to call him at this hour. Everyone who knew him, knew not to call before twelve. When the caller ID said it was Scott calling, he was about ready to deck him the next time they meet in person, werewolf strength be damned. He would find a way, maybe ask Chris Argent for a few of the _Aconitum napellus_ bullets, shoot Scott once deck him a few times, before using another bullet to heal him. He allowed himself another second to revel in his dreams of revenge, before answering.

"... the fuck you want? Sleeping!" Stiles mumbled, barely understandable. It's a good think that Scott was pretty fluent in Stiles.

"Stiles, get ready! Jackson will be there in a few minutes to pick you up. Stiles something... something happened..." Scott used this tone Stiles knew all to well. It was the grave tone of someone delivering bad news. He had heard it, when the deputy on duty told them his mother had died in a car crash, had heard it, when Scott's mother had come to collect him after his father had been shot in the line of duty, and needed immediate emergency surgery.

"Scott? What happened?" Stiles asked. The fear for his friends clearing up the remaining sleepiness rather quickly.

"Stiles, not over the phone, I'll explain once you get here! And Stiles, come quick, we need you, I need you!" Scott said, voice colored with desperation. Stiles hadn't heard the other boy's voice like this in a long time, not since his father had left them.

"I'll be there soon!" Stiles said, trying to sound reassuring, before disconnecting the call.

Whatever had happened, if it had Scott this upset, it was bad. He got out of bed and finished getting dressed in record time. His father was in another double shift, due to one of his deputies becoming a father last week and so taking leave for a few days. And so he didn't even have to be quiet while leaving the house. As soon as he locked the door behind him, he witnessed Jackson's backup car, this overpowered monstrosity of a Range River, speeding into his street. The drivers eyes shone with electric blue light, explaining how he was able to pull mentioned speed off without causing a crash, and the early morning traffic might be a benefiting factor, too.

Within seconds the car had found it's way into the Stilinski's driveway, an obviously agitated Jackson jumping from it driver side, making his way towards a flabbergasted Stiles, enveloping him in a tight hug. Stiles could feel the wolf sniffing him, could feel the boy in his arms calming in the presence of his pack mate, although Stiles wasn't a wolf the others had accepted him as one of them. When his former nemesis released him, Stiles noticed the fear in Jackson's eyes, and finally grasped the significance of the whole situation, there was something really bad going on here.

"We have to go. NOW!" Jackson ordered, the wolf evident in his voice. Stiles couldn't find it in him to feel angry about the commanding tone. Feeling the urgency to get to Scott slowly increasing, he simply replied in a short nod before walking to the car. Once he arrived he noticed the body in the backseat, he didn't know someone as tall as Danny could appear as small as he did in this very moment. And so, instead off taking the passenger seat, he decided to sit next to his team mate, a move Jackson seemed to appreciate.

"Stiles? Do you have any idea, just what the fuck is going on here?" The goalie asked, eyes full of fear, when they went rapidly from Stiles to Jackson again and again. Stiles only smiled, sat next to the other boy and opened his arms in an invitation of a hug, which the taller by took.

"Oh Danny, we hoped you'd never be forced into this. As to knowing what's going on, some of it yes, but the explicit reason for the early wake up call, no. But judging from Jackson's reaction, Scott's voice earlier on the phone and the fact you are here, it has to be big and very very bad." Stiles tried to explain, not knowing just how much Jackson had explained when he collected the other boy.

"Well, could you tell me what you do know? Because, being woken up by the sound of your best friend climbing through your bedroom window at five o'clock in the morning. Being told to get dressed, and then being more or less dragged to his car in a semi attempted of a kidnapping, left me with a serious disadvantage when it comes to information!" Danny snarled in a voice so tinged in sarcasm, Stiles just looked at him in awe, making mental note to refer everyone you called a smartass to the taller boy. After having processed the information the goalie had given him, he looked up, glaring at Jackson, who just shrugged guiltily.

"Once we arrive at our destination, we'll answer all the questions you have, but right now, please, just hold on, O.K.?" Stiles asked, feeling Danny nod before he rested his head on the smaller boys shoulder, hearing a small snore from him Stiles knew Danny was asleep. The emotional rollercoaster must have drained him.

At first, Stiles thought, they would go straight to the Hale house, but now he noticed they were driving the streets of Beacon Hills in a random pattern, with no apparent destination.

"Where are we going?" Stiles asked whispering as to not wake the boy sleeping at his shoulder, knowing Jackson would understand him anyway.

"Beta coordinates! But first we need to make sure no one is following us" Jackson replied also whispering, yet speaking loud enough for

Stiles human hearing to pick up on it.

O.K. This was the last piece of evidence needed to tell him, that the situation had gotten hellishly wrong. The beta house, an old hunting cabin Jackson's family owned but didn't use anymore, was only to be used in the case the Hale property was lost to the pack and they needed to regroup.

Smelling the concern coloring Stiles scent, the driver looked into the mirror, giving the other boy a reassuring smile, only to smile for real when he saw the scene in the backseat. Danny was snoring slightly and Stiles gently stoking the taller boys hair. In this moment he knew, their pack had just won another member, his best friend had been welcomed into the pack, unless Derek would...

They drove another twenty minutes, and when Jackson was satisfied they weren't tailed, he drove towards the cabin.

Once they reached their destination, Stiles noted a car he recognized, but didn't expect to find here. It was Dr. Deacon's beaten old Chevy, sitting next to Derek's Camaro.

If the veterinarian was here, it could only mean someone was hurt badly enough for it exceed the healing capacities of a werewolf. Fearing it was Scott, an option he would not be able to live with, he opened the car door and ran toward the house. He was not prepared for the scene he run into. It wasn't Scott lying in the bed, as he had feared, it was Derek. Scott stood next to his alpha, fully shifted watching the veterinarian yellow eyed, ready to strike at anyone threatening to hurt his alpha.

The head beta relaxed a little when he noticed the rest of his pack, Jackson, Stiles and a tentative and blurry eyed Danny entering the cabin. He was relieved to see all of them together, knowing neither was hurt. This was when the pack was at it's strongest, when they were all together.

A small growl could be heard. Scott looked at Jackson and Jackson at Scott, both thinking the other must be he source, only to be shocked to realize it originated from Stiles. Noticing the faint trace of decay in the air, Stiles knew what was going on!

"Wolfsbane! Who. Did. This." The normally spastic teen asked, in a voice so cold, it send shivers down Scott's spine. He knew his friend was fiercely protective of the people he deemed worth it, he just didn't knew Derek fitted into that category.

"Scott? Maybe you should take your friends and explain what happened tonight! I'll watch over Derek! You know what the options are, now it's up to you four to decide how we'll proceed!" The veterinarian said tentative of what Scott's reaction might be.

The young beta sight, the stress of the last few hours catching up with him as the adrenalin rush slowly dissipated. He wished for the understanding and love the pack promised. Giving in, he winked the others to the cabin's main room, indicating for the other three to sit down.

"O.K. I think I have been patient long enough! One of you going to fill me in on what's going on! I was about to faint, when Jackson hugged Stiles and clung to him like his live depended on it!" Danny said, visibly forcing himself to stay calm.

Scott smirked inwardly, they all had gotten quite addicted to touching each other. Him and Jackson more then Stiles knew. It was normal in a wolfpack to touch a lot, it was a scent sharing thing.

"Danny," Stiles asked, "what do you now about the Hale family?"

"Not much! Only what gossip still floats around town! Most of them died in a house fire a few years back, only three members of the family survived. The oldest children were in school when it happened and the third survivor was an uncle, who sustained sever injuries." He smiled when the others looked at him, their mouths agape. "What? I'm gay, old women like to gossip with me! Of course there are some more ahm... inventive pieces of gossip, on how they liked to isolate themselves because they hid a

horrible secret. On how the whole family was cursed, and they were werewolves..." Danny stopped abruptly noticing the the guilty looks on his friends faces.

"OH you've got to be fucking kidding me! Werewolves? Really? Are all of you..." leaving the rest of the sentence unsaid.

"No, just me and Scott! He was bit by the uncle you mentioned, I begged Derek and in a moment of personal weakness he gave in! But that's a story for another time, now there are more urgent matters at hand." Jackson told his best friend.

"What exactly happened tonight?" Stiles asked, curiosity in his voice while he looked desperately at the door to the bedroom they had just left and where Derek's pitiful moans could be heard.

"It all started, when Allison warned us about an impending attack from the remaining members of Kate's band of rogue hunters. She said, that they had come to her house, seeking assistance in killing the monsters, who had killed their leader. When Chris refused, she said, they were shocked and threatened his family until her mother shot one of them in the leg." Scott started to explain, and Stiles could not understand why his friend's face darkened when he mentioned his girlfriends name.

"She told us, she'd fight on our side, and we trusted her, because it was Allison, right?"Scott continued, and Stiles didn't like his use of the past tense one bit.

"We decided, it would be best if we choose the battleground, as to use our advantages to their fullest." Jackson took up the sentence, sensing Scott wouldn't be able to continue. "And so, we planned to intercept them on their way to the house, fighting in the forest, where we would able to hide, if the necessity arose. As we waited for them, we didn't suspect for Allison to activate a small GPS locator, leading them straight to us. When they were in hearing distance, Allison used one of her blinding arrows to incapacitate us..." Jackson's voice broke in mid sentence, he snuggled closer to Scott, reassuring himself that the other wolf was still there.

"She betrayed us Stiles. Allison betrayed us. She had one of her father's guns, filled with aconite bullets, hidden in her quiver. While we struggled to regain our sight, she..." It was Scott's turn to lose his voice, he too took strength in the reassurance that Jackson was still there.

"She tried to kill us, Stiles, Allison tried to kill us. Derek noticed the gun's laser pointing on Scott's chest, he intercepted the bullets meant for us! Only seconds after that, the arrow's blinding effect lessened and we saw what happened and... well, we snapped! We killed those not fast enough to escape, Scott..." Once again the wolves looked for reassurance in one another.

"I killed her! She tripped over a root and I... I wasn't able to stop the wolf, nor did I want to. She had tried to kill me, my packmate and she had injured my alpha. I bit her neck until she stilled, and then ripped her heart out, making sure she was still alive to witness it..." Scott was clearly more upset about the fact that he ended a human life, then the fact the it was Allison.

Stiles could feel the tears in his eyes, but they weren't tears of sadness, but tears of blinding rage, because of what this girl had done to his pack, his family. Had he been in Scott's position, he was sure, he would have done the same thing.

"We searched the dead hunters and one of them carried an envelop with surveillance files on me, Jackson and the two of you. After we got Derek here and called Dr. Deacon, we had to make sure the you were O.K.." Scott finished, relive showing in his voice.

"So what now? Is Derek going to be all right?" Stiles asked, still looking concerned.

"When Dr. Deacon arrived, and had the chance to administer the antidote, it was already too late. Derek's body had already absorbed too much of the toxin to be able heal on it's own, at least for an alpha of his strength. The bullets they used, were much stronger than the ones Kate used on him before, these were made to kill an alpha. Deacon said it's a miracle he's still alive. As I understand it, there are two possibilities for us to choose from. The first would the "Mercy Killing". The last time Derek was conscious, he begged me to kill him, and take his position as alpha. We had to use heavy sedatives to calm him. Stiles, I think you know, what the other alternative is!" Scott indicated.

"Strengthen his wolf's spirit. If we add another member to the pack, his wolf might get the power boost needed to heal him. And the answer is yes. I'll do it. I've lost my mother, had to see my father suffer from a bullet wound and nearly saw you die a few times. I won't lose any of you, not if I can help it!" Stiles replied, his voice filled with steely determination.

Scott, who had abandoned his seat next to Jackson, knelt in front of his friend, looking him into his eyes questioningly.

"Stiles? Are you sure? You know this decision contains considerable risks. You might die!" Scott reminded him bluntly. Seeing Danny's face filling with horror.

"I. Don't. Care. And Scott? I know more about these things than you do!" Answered Scott just as bluntly.

"DUDE, don't remind me! I just wanted to make sure you knew what was at stake here!" Scott said.

The pack sat there for a while, until it was time for Deacon to leave. Later they went to Derek's bedside, waiting for the alpha's metabolism to burn it's way through the sedatives, they had administered earlier that day. In true Derek fashion, it only took about fifteen minutes, before his eyes opened, and a dramatic sigh escaped his mouth.

"Scott? Why can you never do as you're told?" Derek asked, his voice showing his barely contained anger.

"Because you asked me to kill you, and that went against all my instincts. And as it was you, who taught me to listen to my instincts, I thought you'd appreciate it, your welcome by the way. We all know you are our alpha, and you have already decided to do the whole unselfish sacrifice thing. But we have a counter proposal." Scott said, knowing he'd never talk to Derek so bluntly, if the grumpy man wasn't on his deathbed at the moment. But it might be the only way to stun him enough, for him to go along with their offer.

"And what, BETA, might this counter proposal be?" Derek asked, his grasp on his anger thinning.

"Bite me. And wow that sounded wrong!" Stiles replied, holding his wrist towards Derek's face.

"WHAT? NO! ABSOFUCKINGLUTELY NOT" Derek screamed, pushing Stiles arm away as if it would burn him at the smallest touch.

"We both know, there is now way you're going to make it trough the next hours alive, if you don't. You think I'm not aware of the risk? If you've forgotten, it was me, not you, who coached – not one – but BOTH your beats through their first change, barely knowing ass from elbow. I'm aware the bite might kill me, but damn it Derek, it's my life and I am willing to risk it, if it means you live. What about Scott? He already lost one person he thought could trust today! Can you imagine what losing you on top of becoming alpha might do to him? What about Jackson? He's barely had any training, and I don't fancy his chances with Scott as his teacher. And what about me? Who will protect me, once the Argents go for blood. They know my association with you guys, I hardly think they'll care I'm human anymore, not after my pack killed their daughter" Stiles said, putting heavy the guilt on. He knew it was a low blow, but what was the saying? It's easier to ask forgiveness than permission?

Once again he put his arm to Derek's lips. He could feel how much Derek was struggling with himself, but, thankfully, in the end rationality won out. He could feel Derek's canines growing, could see his eyes flashing red, and feel the pain of the bite. It was excruciating, first the pain the bite itself left on his nervous system, and then the burning sensation announcing the beginning of his transition. Stiles felt his knees give out under him, felt the strong arms of his pack brothers grabbing him, gently placing him on the bed opposite to the Derek occupied at the moment.

"You need to increase your odds!" Danny said, following Stiles example, holding his arm to Derek's lips. Not only shocking Stiles, but apparently the other three guys in the room as well, Jackson's mouth falling open. Derek was about so start another round of protests, when Danny beat him to speaking.

"Derek. In the last few hours, I learned just how much you mean to the people in this room. You are the big brother neither of them ever had, you gave Jackson the family he always wanted. And in many ways, that's what I want, too. When I came out to my parents they shunt me. I still live with them and they pay the bills, but we are no family. You guys have become more my family, than the people I'm forced to call mum and dad. And if the price to enter this family is the bite, then it's a price I'm gladly willing to pay, consequences be damned!" Danny said, apparently making his case, because, seconds later, there was a gasp filling the room, and another body was disposed on the bed Stiles now claimed as his own. Slowly both boys wrapped their arms around one another.

Only time could tell now. Only time would reveal, if both their bites took, only time would be able to predict, if Derek would survive.

With every minute passing, Stiles felt tiredness overtaking his body, but he had expected that, he knew his body was mobilizing all it's power reserves, to make sure it was strong enough to survive the DNA changes it would undergo this night. Slowly looking over at the bed's other occupant, he allowed his ADHD scrambled brain one more blooper, before the wolf would, hopefully, burn this condition out of him.

"Hey, Danny? Am I attractive to gay guys?" He asked, making them both laugh with the memory. What he didn't expect, was for Danny to slowly push his lips against Stiles in the softest of kisses, and , after breaking the touch, to whisper into his ear, so softly even their wolfy friends wouldn't understand:

"Let's talk about this tomorrow, for now sleep!"

Before gently pulling the shorter boy in an embrace, resting his face in Stiles hair after lying down. Strangely enough, Stiles thought, he would, not could, get used to this. Both did not notice their best friends taking watch, both switching between taking turns on their healing alpha's, and their transitioning best friends bedsides, until, in the wee hours of morning, both decided all was well; both joining Stiles and Danny on their bed, forming a puppy pile of truly epic proportions. Both looking at each other once over their best friend's heads, reading the feeling of contentment in the others face, before falling asleep.

When Danny woke up in the morning he felt... strange for the lack of a better word. It was as if his senses were in overdrive, bombarding his brain with new impressions. He could hear not only his own, but also four other strong and steady heartbeats, and judging from their individual speeds, everyone, but him, was still asleep.

He felt the familiar smell of Jackson hitting his nostrils, only this times it was a thousand times stronger than normal. He could name and distinguish between the different aspects, forming the person Jackson was. But, and he didn't know how, he could also identify Scott and Stiles and even Derek, could tell Derek was over the hill, would live and only need some more time to fully heal.

"Stop worrying, you are stinking up the place, and after yesterday I definitely had enough of the stench of desperation and fear." Jackson said, snuggling closer to the taller boy planting a chaste kiss on the other boy's neck. Danny hadn't noticed, but in the time his brain had needed to process the onslaught of new information, his best friend had woken up.

Danny knew it should feel strange, but he realized he liked the physical closeness to the other boys. In the night he had shifted closer to Stiles, spooning the other boy, somewhere further south he felt the effect the close proximity with three hot males had on him, he felt his cheeks heat up. A chuckle cut the silence.

"Dude, no reason to be ashamed, we are teen boys, and combined with your new werewolf libido you are gonna be a walking boner for a few weeks. At least until you learn to control the stimuli constantly raining down on you!" Scott said, smirk evident in his voice.

"Danny? I just realized your friends are a bad influence in mine, Scott is not allowed to hang out with Jackson without supervision anymore. But I have to agree, we are teen boys! But, wow, you trying to give me an inferiority complex? From the feel of it, you should be forced to carry a permit for that thing." Stiles said, earning himself laughter from Scott and Jackson.

"You should have seen how his first boyfriend was limping the first few times he preformed the walk of shame. And concerning Scott, really Stilinski? That boy was already corrupted, when you handed him over to me, and you know it! " Jackson replied, heaving a put upon sigh. Earning himself a "HEY" and punch to the shoulder from their head beta.

Slowly disentangling themselves, Stiles and Danny both took a quick inventory of themselves and the extend of their new abilities.

"You get used to the feeling after a few days, don't worry!" Jackson supplied, knowing the deep feeling of awe the two new wolves experienced at the moment. Jackson and Scott shared a fond look while watching their best friends, seeing their eyes sparkle with the excitement of a child on Christmas morning, as they explored the world with their new senses.

Slowly turning towards one another, two pairs of glowing amber eyes met, heads moving together in a kiss that was nothing like the gentle peck from the previous day. There was a small moan, escaping both their throats, as they experienced this mind blowing sensation with their strengthened senses.

Their hands gently started roaming the others body, slowly making way from shoulder, to chest, over their nipples, encountering two six packs reaching their destination at the waistbands of their boxers. Not be stay passive any longer Scott and Jackson stared gravitating towards each other, finally giving in to the pull they both had felt since Jackson had been turned. Burning amber met electric blue as they copied Danny's Stiles' earlier tentative first steps shedding their remaining clothes.

The air was thick with arousal, as the four young men got to know one another's bodies, exploring curves and scars, mapping out every square inch of skin with eyes and hands and tongues. Dicks leaking, the boys enjoyed the feeling of closeness, feeling the others close proximity strengthening each other. None of them were what you'd call ugly ducklings to begin with, but the bite had done them all kinds off favors. Apart from the mental changes, they had been physically changed as well. Stiles was less the clumsy friend zone candidate he entered the room as. He had gained some ponds of pure muscle, making him look more like his pack brothers, giving him this whole "Dads lock your daughters away, here I come" bad boy vibe. It suited him well!

When Scott let go of Jackson, he slowly turned and took his first good look at his best friend, smiling when Stiles answered his look with a predatory smile underlined by glowing eyes so similar to Scott's own. Making his way over to the other pair, he tipped Danny on his shoulder in a "Mind if I cut in" gesture, before grabbing Stiles and sealing their lips in a deep seething kiss, that was less desire than an affirmation of friendship and love and companionship and brotherhood. The were simply no words powerful enough to grasp the boys emotions in their current situation. Breaking their kiss, Scott rested his forehead on Stiles' while both slowly turned their head to their mates, finding them in a kiss mirroring their own.

Mates, yes Scott now knew, was what he and Jackson were. Their former need to pummel the other into the ground, was the equivalent off a little boy pulling the pigtails of the girl he secretly liked. They gave the other the stability needed to survive the weirdness that were their lives. And maybe with Stiles and Danny at their side and Derek as their leader, the whole wolf thing might not be as bad as he once thought.

They stayed on the bed for hours, sating needs, talking and cuddling, before they finally fell asleep in an exhausted pile of limbs.

When Derek awoke in the hours later, he knew Stiles and Danny had finished the transition, he could feel the additional power they brought to the pack, could feel the strengthened urge to protect them. He was hungry and needed to check on his pups. When he got out of bed the first thing he noticed, was the lingering pungent smell of sex. A look at the other bed revealed it's source. His four pups lay there, Scott's head on Jackson's chest, Stiles' arms were wrapped around Danny and, somehow, they all had their legs entangled. He could feel the contentment coming from the four in waves, and was certain they would be out for a while.

His pack was strong and once they were properly trained would be deadly warriors. The hunters would hopefully think twice about attacking them again. If Argent wanted revenge, they would be ready to end this once and for all. And somehow Derek knew, they would not lose...

End


	2. AN

Hi guys,

sorry no new chapter! Over the last few days I got some notifications about people liking this story. This is more of a poll:

Option A: The story in itself is enough and should remain untouched!

Option B: I could turn this into one of my regular multi-chapter stories!

[Note: I already have three of those and updates take longer then I'd liked them too. But the potential is definitively there, and I might have some ideas! ;-) ]

Option C: I could wright a prequel and/or sequel! [Why did Alison betray them? Will Stiles' ADHD effect his werewolf self? Will all of them survive the final battle, if not who'll die? And so on...]

Interested in one of those? Please press review or send me a PN!

Dedalus

PS: I noticed some misspellings and typos and will try to correct them! Someone willing to play BETA for a poor none native speaker? Especially when it comes to comma placement my writing style tends to be a little... well atrocious really!


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